The
Recreational Fishing Alliance
Texas State Chapter
Red Snapper Regulation
"We do not intend that our natural resources shall be exploited by the few against the interests of the many. Our aim is to preserve our natural resource for the public as a whole, for the average man and the average woman who make up the body of the American people." - President Theodore Roosevelt
The crisis we face is the result of two factors; anti-fishing environmental groups and elitist fishing organizations pursuing a policy that would sharply limit many Texan’s access to marine fisheries, and an inflexible national fisheries law that penalizes anglers even when good rebuilding progress is being made. RFA spear-headed an effort with members of the 110th Congress to draft a science-based revision to Magnuson Stevens Fisheries Conservation and Management Act that unfortunately died when that session ended. We are now organizing an all out grass-roots movement to encourage all five Gulf state Governors and their Congressional delegations to support such a revision in the 111th Congress.
We were saddened by the recent loss of Texas Parks & Wildlife Commissioner John Parker, who had worked tirelessly to help us outline a plan to move this issue forward. Before he died, Commissioner Parker briefed Governor Perry on this issue and the Governor agreed to raise the issue with other Gulf States Governors. Now, our job is to let all the Gulf Governors hear from the fishing communities at large that action is needed by them and state Congressional delegations to revise the Magnuson Act.
We are asking that you write a brief letter to Governor Perry stating the importance to Texas sportsmen of getting flexibility added to the Magnuson Act, and that you do the same with your U.S. Congressman and U.S. Senators. If you act now we’re confident our collective voices will be heard throughout the Gulf and in Washington D.C. Governor Perry’s, Senator Hutchison’s and Senator Cornyn’s mailing and email addresses are shown below. You can Google your U.S. Representative’s addresses. We urge you to take these actions NOW to help preserve Texan’s access to our Gulf fisheries.
|
Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison |
Senator John Cornyn |
Gov. Rick Perry |
|
Attn: Obi
Galvan |
Attn: Gail
Green |
Attn: Toby
Baker |
Click HERE to identify your U.S. House (Congressional) Representative.
Favorable legislation has been introduced in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.
Click below to view and track the progress of these bills as they work their way through Congress.
H.R. 1584 - Flexibility In Rebuilding American Fisheries Act of 2009 -
House Bill
S. 1255 - Flexibility In Rebuilding American Fisheries Act of 2009 - Senate Bill
Overview of H.R. 1584 & S. 1255 - Flexibility in Rebuilding American Fisheries Act of 2009
Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act to require fishery management plans, amendments, or regulations
for overfished fisheries to specify a time period for ending overfishing and
rebuilding the fishery that is as short as practicable (currently, as short as
possible).
Modifies the exceptions to the requirement that such period not exceed ten
years.
Requires consideration, in evaluating progress to end overfishing and rebuild
overfished stocks, of factors other than commercial and recreational fishing.
Requires, when the Secretary of Commerce extends the period under specified
provisions, that the maximum rebuilding time not exceed the sum of the initial
ten-year period, the expected time to rebuild the stock absent any fishing
mortality and under prevailing environmental conditions, and the mean generation
time of the stock.
Click below to view:
N.O.A.A. Closes Red Snapper Fishery - RFA Files Lawsuit
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RFA Letter to of 9/21/09 to G.M.F.M.C. Re:
Generic
ACL/AM Scoping Comments
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RFA / Texas Press Release - RFA / Texas Board Meets With TPWD Officials
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RFA / TEXAS Position Paper
Federal Management of Important Recreational
Fisheries. 8/24/09
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A letter regarding Red Snapper Management, from Texas Senator Cornyn and a response from William T. Hogarth, NOAA.
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12/15/ 05 RFA Press Release: RFA Exploring Innovative Management for Red Snapper.
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12/22/05 letter from RFA National - Executive
Director, James A. Donofrio, Outlining
RFA's Proposal Regarding Red Snapper Regulations.
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Lawsuit filed by CCA, Ocean Conservancy and
Gulf Restoration Network.
Click Here
The unfortunate outcome of this lawsuit
Click Here
This lawsuit proved to be devastating to recreational
fishing interests.
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To Measure the Validity of the Current N.M.F.S. Red Snapper Data Click Here
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Letter from to Rep Ron Paul - To Secretary
Gutierrez, US Department of Commerce
Click Here
Here is the Deal
The current Federal Red Snapper Regulations are unfair to recreational fishing interests, and are devastating our fishery.
RFA Texas has long understood that Regulatory Discards in both the Commercial and Recreational Red Snapper Fisheries is a major part of the problem. We conducted a release mortality study. This study concluded that there is a 70 to 80 percent release mortality in the Red Snapper Fishery in Federal Waters. National Marine Fisheries Service has long been aware of these studies. Why they have chosen to ignore the Regulatory Discards is beyond our comprehension. The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (see below) plainly states that Regulatory Discards should be reduced as much as practical. This is a good chance for N.M.F.S. to rule in accordance with the Magnuson Act. We have always understood that if we kept the first five Red Snapper in Federal Waters, we would save three times the Total Allowable Catch. At 9 million pounds, that would be 27 million pounds of Red Snapper left to spawn. This would be a “True Conservation Move”.
RFA Texas also supports a separate Federal Regulatory Zone for Texas, since our fish are caught at much greater depth than in the Eastern Gulf. The increased release mortality rate of fish caught in our deeper waters eliminates catch and release as a viable and practical conservation alternative. N.M.F.S. seems to want to ignore this fact. There is talk of lowering the Total Allowable Catch for the upcoming Red Snapper Season to a mere 7 million pounds. RFA Texas feels this is totally unjustified. This reduction would devastate Coastal Fishing Communities. Snapper is the only winter offshore species available to Texans. The Eastern Gulf has many species available during winter months which are simply not available to Texas Anglers.
NMFS should ask Recreational Anglers to input their catches via e-mail. There should be websites set up to receive the data in real time. This would be a "Common Sense Approach". This data would be far more accurate than the current outdated data collection method. Recreational Anglers data input would take the guesswork out of the model. The catches are based on a total guess under the current system. The Recreational for Hire sector has had to keep logs for years. Recreational Anglers are seldom credited with bad weather days in the model. If Recreational Anglers truly understood the faulty data collection systems they would be irate. Incidentally, RFA Texas has asked RFA National to petition NMFS to extend the Recreational Fishing Season due to the hurricane down time, just as the Commercials have asked for themselves. We expect a response soon.
RFA Texas will be offering a letter on these proposals to be entered into the record at the Gulf of Mexico Fisheries Management Council meeting to be held January 10, 11, and 12, 2006, at the Omni Hotel in Corpus Christi, Texas. We have posted a downloadable letter on this page, to be signed, with your name and address. Individual letters will be very powerful. We will have a strong campaign running the entire Texas Coast to insure we get a large number of letters. We are wanting 10,000 plus letters along with 500 plus RFA members to sign up for public testimony on the Red Snapper issue.
We are pleased to state that recreational angling interests in Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Corpus Christi, South Padre Island, and Port Aransas are pushing hard to help us achieve our goal. Texas anglers are really excited about finding a solution. The phone is ringing constantly at RFA Texas with offers of support. Once we have gone on the record with our proposal, RFA National can then lobby the Secretary of Commerce to act on this “Common Sense Plan”. In the long run we feel the tremendous reduction in Regulatory Discards would be large enough to open the Western Gulf of Mexico up to a year around fishery once again.
We have heard of a
proposed plan for catch and release only, in our Red Snapper Fishery by
another national fishing conservation organization. With a 70 to 80 percent
release mortality rate, any move toward a catch and release Red Snapper fishery
in the Western Gulf of Mexico would be insanity.
RFA Texas would also like to see Texas Parks and Wildlife jump on the Artificial
Reef Program, as the States in the
Eastern Gulf of Mexico have done.
Alabama in particular has done a great job on artificial reefs. Texas could
benefit from an Artificial Reef Program in State waters. RFA Texas will be
pushing for Grant Funding to implement the artificial reef programs. RFA Texas
has long understood that a proactive move to improve fisheries is always the
best move.
Highlights of
Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management Act
TITLE III -- NATIONAL FISHERY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM
SEC. 301. NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR FISHERY 16 U.S.C. 1851
CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT
(a) IN GENERAL.--Any fishery management plan prepared, and any regulation
promulgated to implement any such plan, pursuant to this title shall be
consistent with the following national standards for fishery conservation and
management:
(1) Conservation and management measures shall prevent overfishing while
achieving, on a continuing basis, the optimum yield from each fishery for the
United States fishing industry.
(2) Conservation and management measures shall be based upon the best scientific
information available.
(3) To the extent practicable, an individual stock of fish shall be managed as a
unit throughout its range, and interrelated stocks of fish shall be managed as a
unit or in close coordination.
(4) Conservation and management measures shall not discriminate between
residents of different States. If it becomes necessary to allocate or assign
fishing privileges among various United States fishermen, such allocation shall
be (A) fair and equitable to all such fishermen; (B) reasonably calculated to
promote conservation; and (C) carried out in such manner that no particular
individual, corporation, or other entity acquires an excessive share of such
privileges.
(5) Conservation and management measures shall, where practicable, consider
efficiency in the utilization of fishery resources; except that no such measure
shall have economic allocation as its sole purpose.
(6) Conservation and management measures shall take into account and allow for
variations among, and contingencies in, fisheries, fishery resources, and
catches.
(7) Conservation and management measures shall, where practicable, minimize
costs and avoid unnecessary duplication.
(8) Conservation and management measures shall, consistent with the conservation
requirements of this Act (including the prevention of overfishing and rebuilding
of overfished stocks), take into account the importance of fishery resources to
fishing communities in order to (A) provide for the sustained participation of
such communities, and (B) to the extent practicable, minimize adverse economic
impacts on such communities.
(9) Conservation and management measures shall, to the extent practicable, (A)
minimize bycatch and (B) to the extent bycatch cannot be avoided, minimize the
mortality of such bycatch.
(10) Conservation and management measures shall, to the extent practicable,
promote the safety of human life at sea.
(b) GUIDELINES.-- The Secretary shall establish advisory guidelines (which shall
not have the force and effect of law), based on the national standards, to
assist in the development of fishery management plans.
Click below to view the Complete:
Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management Act
Part 1
Part 2
Article From December 2005 Issue of Texas Fish and Game Magazine
© Copyright TF&G 2005 - (Reproduced with permission of TF&G Magazine). (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader ®)
Note: After this article was submitted, additional data has caused RFA / TEXAS to revise our position, and we now support retention of the first FIVE fish caught.
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12/04/2009